Do I Wanna Know
by kissing2cousins
Summary: Written as a sequel to Sweeping the Ashes 'Jack leaned in closer, inches from Daniels face and inhaled deeply, craning his head to speak in Daniels ear. Intoxicating and dangerously close to touching the younger man but not daring to break the fragile spell that kept them suspended.' We moved all other stories to 'Archive of Our Own' - come visit us there for more SG-1 fics :)


Do I Wanna Know?

***Have you got color in your cheeks?***

Colonel Jack O'Niell slowly swirled the thick amber scotch in his glass, the dull clink of ice keeping rhythm with the low pulse of the music pumping through the pub. An elbow propped on the well polished cherry-wood bar, face resting on the upturned palm as the other hand slowly rolled the glass of 30yr malt scotch like a man in a trance. To the unknowing observer the salt and pepper haired man with the strong cut features, two-day-old stubble and rich coffee-brown eyes appeared somewhat bored but a closer look at would have reveled the small quick at the corner of his mouth as he enjoying loosing himself in the steady thumping beat of the lounge music. The ambient noise of conversations from the low-lit booths around him was a welcome change from the silence of his empty house or the litany of mission briefings and debriefings.

The last two weeks had been a bit of a shit show and the next three days of down time were a welcome chance to try and decompress. Jack had tried to confront Daniel about the abrupt end of there… _'whatever it was'_ after the archeologist had found out his wife was still alive. Then when she died, Daniel had given him the cold shoulder only to make kissy face at the next eligible, cute blond 'Destroyer of Worlds' that walked by. It had blown up in his face, in a bad way.

Turned out that he had the blinders on, being caught up in his own rendition of things and been too busy playing the aloof cool-guy to realize how he had never given Daniel the chance to expect anything more from him. The guy who didn't want anything serious and after all, feeling _were_ pretty serious. So Daniel had given Jack exactly what he had asked for and his own medicine was awfully bitter to swallow. Somehow, he wasn't totally surprised by how things played out once the dust had settled. It wasn't the first time that Jack had put up walls that he hadn't realized were there until it cost him something dear. He had just thought he had gotten better at realizing it and maybe he had but old habits died hard and he was military man, habit kept you alive.

*** Do you ever get that fear that you can't shift the tide that sticks around like summat in your teeth?***

'_Can't change what's been done' _he puffed a heavy sigh into the glass against his lips, watching it fog as he swallowed the little wave of bitterness before he inhaled the tropical aroma of the rich scotch. Taking a long sip he let the cool liquid glide over his tongue, down his throat and finally swallowed to the warm taste of Butterscotch with the warmth it kindled in his belly.

"What did I tell you, Colonel? One of my favorite, can I get you another?" The 40's something, self-proclaimed connoisseur of good scotch, stood behind the bar looking happily smug. Wiping down a glass as he stopped in front of the colonel and awaited Jack's answer.

Jack shrugged, cocked an eyebrow and swirled the last sip in the glass for good measure before finishing what had remained. He set the glass down, then with a well aimed push, slid it back towards 'Terry' with a '_keep em' coming_' gesture. Terry snatched glass expertly and with a grin, headed back towards the premium liquors.

Scotch was a little outside of Jacks usual beverage range, always having been more of a beer guy but tonight he had left the base and headed out to find something different. He had driven along streets he hadn't bothered to explore before and had passed by one other pub before he pulled in to the parking lot of the 'Liquid Lounge'. The stained glass lights, plush leather seats and brass accents on dark-cherry wood made Jack think it would have been a place Daniel would have liked.

A glance at his watch told him that he'd managed to waste two hours sitting on this stool ignoring the external world, mulling over everything and wondering how to patch things up with him and Danny. It had been a pretty sorry attempt at soul searching, drinking scotch and lazily eyeing up the few patrons that occupied the space. Flipping from feeling sorry for himself for screwing things up and angry at Daniel for not calling him on his bullshit earlier. Daniel never really pulled any punches with him before, how was this different and was it?

The bartender, Terry, returned and a fresh glass of Speyside slid into his waiting hand. "Anything else for you Colonel?"

"Call a cab for me, would yah, Terry?" Jack asked, taking the first drought as Terry nodded and returned to the register.

Jack was left again to contemplate his drink, his situation and the fabric of the universe. His thoughts had been stuck, far too often on trying to figure Daniel out. How one person managed to rent so much space in his head was a little intimidating. The archeologist had always found a way to engrain himself on nearly everyone he ever met, good or bad. Some super power of his, the ability to burrow his way into your brain and cause you to act against your own better judgment.

How did he do it? How did Daniel have him so wrapped up?

***Are there some aces up your sleeve?  
Have you no idea that you're in deep?***

As Jack swaggered up the front sidewalk to his door he figured he was doing pretty good, until he dropped his keys on the patio.

"Figures." He muttered, annoyed that he would now have to focus on digging the keys out of the snow with his bare hands, as his gloves had gotten lost somewhere between the lounge and the cab ride home. Otherwise he was feeling fairly good and right with the world, considering an evening of brooding with no solid conclusions besides needing to talk to the archeologist.

The colonel reached down and recovered the keys but when they slipped from his hand a second time, he tried to make a quick recapture and lost his balance. Flailing he twisted sideways, snatching and ripping the bottom off of his mailbox with a loud screeching of metal against stucco as he fell into the snow covered cedar shrub with a string of colorful curses. The shock of snow on the small of his back, up his pant legs, down sleeves and up the back of his neck cancelled out whatever warm glow he had gained from the scotch in one brutal instant.

"Having some trouble, Jack?"

Jack squinted up at the silhouette of a very Daniel-like figure in halo of the patio light. While Jack had been trying to find a good placement for his bare hands in the freezing snow and berating his stupidity at dropping the keys a second time on top of not having gloves, he hadn't heard nor seen the other man make his way up the sidewalk. For a second Jack wasn't entirely sure the other man was really there.

"Danny?"

"Jack?"

"I think I broke my mailbox." Jack snorted irritably from his sprawled position, one leg kicked out across the front step, the other leg bent at the knee, buried calf high in the snow with tufts of cedar shrub jutting out beneath him. One hand was braced against the wall, the other at an awkward angle as the Colonel attempted to prop himself up and out of the shrub. Jack focused on the amused blue eyes and the quirk of Daniels lips as he tried to suppress a grin. Becoming slightly less annoyed he grinned a little back but the other mans guard quickly went up, shaking his head with a sigh and offering his hand to the Colonel. When Jacks freezing hand closed around Daniels gloved one, he ruled out the possibility that he was dreaming it up.

***"I dreamt about you nearly every night this week  
How many secrets can you keep?"**

When both men had made it into the sanctity of the Colonels house and the awkward removal of snow-filled winter clothing was complete, Jack headed straight for the living room and knelt in front of the gas fireplace. Cranking it to high, as light from the flames flared brightness into the otherwise dark room and he pressed his hands against the glass. Then pulled them back after a moment and began slowly rubbing them in an attempt to return circulation to the aching digits while Daniel stood at the living rooms edge.

"So, when did you start locking your front door?" Came the younger mans voice, low and steady as it broke the silence.

Jack chuckled quietly, rubbing his hands together; "You're a bad influence."

*** 'Cause there's this tune I found that makes me think of you somehow and I play it on repeat  
Until I fall asleep  
Spilling drinks on my settee***

"Hmph, I don't think I'd go that far, Jack." Daniel walked towards the fireplace, gravitationally pulled by the warmth.

Jack listened to the other approach, not bothering to move and fairly sure that he would topple over if he had tried. Despite the lack of pain in his knees, due mostly to the numbing effects of his earlier beverage choices, he was not about to push his luck. The cold shock of the snow had made good work of sinking into his joints.

The light from the fireplace cast rich amber shadows around the living room and when Daniel came up beside him, kneeling with hands outreached, Jack turned to see the profile of the other man in the firelight. The reflection of flames danced on the lenses of his glasses, hiding the blue eyes he knew so well. He was sure that Daniel licked his lips just to torment him, it was unjust that the light flickered off the scientists sandy hair in a way that made it look like flecks of gold. The scruff from a few days of not shaving combined with the ambience of the room made the younger man look like the cover of one those harlequin romance novels, sans the glasses.

God damned it, Daniel was gorgeous.

***(Do I wanna know)  
If this feeling flows both ways?  
(Sad to see you go)  
Was sort of hoping that you'd stay  
(Baby we both know)  
***

"You're staring, Jack." Daniel spoke after a long moment, not turning to face the older man. The heat on his face had become a combination of the fire and the other man's gaze.

"Am I?" Jacks voice was deep and husky and it sent unbidden shivers down Daniels spine. The reaction wasn't lost to the older man whose lips twitched with a self-satisfied smirk. "Why are you here, Danny?"

***That the nights were mainly made for saying things that you can't say tomorrow day

Crawling back to you.***

Daniel swallowed and took a deep breath, rising to his feet and clearing his throat.

"Because you called me, twice." The coldness had returned to his tone as he fought to remember that he had no interest in tumbling back into a meaningless situation regarding the Colonel. He had items here that he still needed to pick up and more accurately, he felt a little guilty at not answering, incase the other man had needed his help.

Jack turned to him with a sour expression, "No I didn't… I know I'd remember that."

The colonel finally gave into the growing ache in his legs and, with a cracking that made Daniel wince, he rose to his feet, turning a lopsided smile at the other man.

Daniel fished the phone from his pocket and flashed the screen showing two missed calls from Jacks number.

*** Ever thought of calling when you've had a few?  
'Cause I always do  
Maybe I'm too busy being yours to fall for somebody new  
Now I've thought it through

Crawling back to you***

"Fancy that. Must have been one of those pocket dials. I'm smart enough to know you wouldn't answer… but my ass? Just wasn't convinced. It's had a few drinks and there's no reasoning with it when its been drinking." Jack answered smoothly as he wondered into the kitchen, feeling the need to get away from the other man before he did something he shouldn't. He had sure thought about phoning Daniel… more then a couple of times but he didn't know what to say.

The proximity of Daniel, the vision of him in the fire light and the smell of his cologne had Jack's pulse racing as he did the only logical thing he could think of, given the circumstances, which was reach for something to drink.

"Well… I thought something might have been up and I needed to come by to gather the rest of my things anyway…" Daniel trailed off as he watched Jack disappear into the kitchen then heard the sound the fridge opening. The rattle of bottles clinking together followed as the colonel re-emerged with two beers and shoved one in his hand. "Ugh-no thank you."

"Look Daniel, I get it. I screwed up. You're the language guy. I'm the shooting guy. I told you what I wanted and that's what I got. Now, can you just have a beer with me and lets get over this? I'm tired of playing this game, you can't avoid me any more then I can, you." Jack clinked his beer against Daniels abruptly and raised it to toast the other man before taking a long swig.

Daniel stared at him incredulously.

***So have you got the guts?  
Been wondering if your heart's still open and if so I wanna know what time it shuts  
Simmer down and pucker up  
I'm sorry to interrupt. It's just I'm constantly on the cusp of trying to kiss you  
I don't know if you feel the same as I do  
But we could be together if you wanted to***

Daniel watched as the older man swallowed the gulp of beer with the bob of his Adams apple. Then, pursing his lips he looked down at the peace offering in his own hand. Brows creased with consideration as he looked back at Jack who stood watching him patiently. Jack looked relaxed as if he was resigned to whatever Daniel decided. With the only light in the room coming from the fireplace and distant entryway, Jacks brown eyes looked almost black. The occasional flicker from the flames causing caramel highlights that the scientist couldn't help but find more then a little mesmerizing. The older man looked content, like a man ready to face his fate and the way he looked at Daniel made his chest ache a little, dully.

Jack raised a questioning eyebrow at him, tipping the lip of his beer towards his companion and sloshing the liquid within slightly.

"I'm thinking." Daniel snipped, casting his eyes down and using his free hand to push the glasses back up his nose.

*** (Do I wanna know?)  
If this feeling flows both ways?  
(Sad to see you go)  
Was sort of hoping that you'd stay  
(Baby we both know)  
That the nights were mainly made for saying things that you can't say tomorrow day***

"Danny…" the unmistakable deep rumble of Jack saying his name in that way made it impossible for Daniel to deny the rush it caused him to feel.

"Look Jack," Daniel swallowed, uncertainty as much as self-doubt made him take a step away, towards the side table where he set the still full, beer bottle down. Turning to find Jack almost on top of him, he swallowed hard at the proximity of the other man. The smell of cedar still clung to him and mingled with the unfamiliar scent of butterscotch and Jacks natural musk.

Jack was trying to behave, trying to reason with himself that he would only make things worse if he acted on his driving desire to crush the other mans body against his own and claim those damned lips that Daniel kept pursing. He had realized too late that he couldn't say or ask for one thing and feel or want another. Its what got him into this mess, now he reasoned that maybe he should just say what he was feeling? Boiling heat and desire for the scientist.

"Dammit, Daniel," Jacks voice was almost a growl, dark and husky and full of lust. "I don't know how to tell you how much I want taste you."

Jack leant in closer, inches from Daniels face and inhaled deeply, craning his head to speak in Daniels ear. Intoxicating and dangerously close to touching the younger man but not daring to break the fragile spell that kept them suspended. Daniel shivered at the hot breath on his throat, his eyes unconsciously sliding shut as he let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding.  
"I want you, Danny. I don't know if I can go on being this close and not having you."

***Crawling back to you (crawling back to you)

Ever thought of calling when you've had a few? (you've had a few)  
'Cause I always do ('cause I always do)  
Maybe I'm too (maybe I'm too busy) busy being yours to fall for somebody new  
Now I've thought it through

Crawling back to you***

Neither man moved an inch, Daniel's breaths had become shallow as his head had unconsciously craned at hot whispers that ghosted against it. He swallowed finally, licking his dry lips and parted them slightly as if to speak but no sound came out.

***(Do I wanna know?)  
If this feeling flows both ways?  
(Sad to see you go)  
Was sort of hoping that you'd stay  
(Baby we both know)  
That the nights were mainly made for saying things that you can't say tomorrow day***

"Don't leave me this way, Danny." Came Jacks soft plea, a hot sigh against his Daniels throat that bordered on defeat.  
What little control Jack had managed was crumbling at the soft moan that escaped Daniels lips but the Colonel pulled all of his reserves and waited for some reply in the darkness.

"I need to know… do you want me crawling back to you?"

***(Do I wanna know?)  
Too busy being yours to fall  
(Sad to see you go)  
Ever thought of calling down?  
(Do I wanna know?)  
Do you want me crawling back to you?***

Hey! We moved to Archive of Our Own... come check us out there! same user name (kissing2cousins)

We are also looking for a beta-reader! So e-mail us or come visit at Archive of Our Own!  
Hope you enjoyed :)


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